Help, just sunk my son's new Aquacraft SuperVee

OK, call me a silly Dad. My 12 yr-old son and I took his new SuperV out for it's first spin and Dad had a few problems. Problem 1: My son couldn't get the boat to go fast. It kept cavitating. So being Dad, and supposedly knowing everything, I asked him to give me the remote. By slowing increasing throttle, it got up on plane and it screams. (Is this an inherent characteristic of this boat that we need to adjust to, or can I tune it so it doesn't cavitate on takeoff? If so how?) Problem 2: And this is REALLY where I need help. After doing a perfect turn at the far end of the park pond, it was screaming back when I saw the geese. I turn off the throttle, but the boat was too fast or the goose was too slow. The next thing I know, I'm bow up and bobbing. While looking for a row boat to retrieve it, my son starting saying "Dad, Dad, DAD!!! I think it's sinking!. Sure enough, plunk, it went under. To make a potentially long story shorter, Dad swam out and dove down 10 feet to retrieve it. Of course now nothing works. Does anyone know what I need to replace and where to get it? I bought it from a local hobby store, but they don't carry spare parts. Also, do experienced boaters glue in flotation so they don't sink? Any recommendations on type, placement, type of glue? Thanks guys, I could really use your help.

go on towerhobbies.com they have everything. I'd get an aftermarket Brushless ESC that maybe has more options to make it user friendly. You can buy the stock brushless motor on tower as well. Servos are standard size...just about any will work. Reciever, I think most will work, but someone else will have to confirm that.

there should be a saying, its not dead untill its dry and dead. open the radio box, and let everything dry. with luck some parts may still work. do I gather that you hadn't heard about taping the hatch? with a stock prop they all cavitate, there may be a few things you can check/fix/adjust though; rudder trimmed straight, remove any casting flash from the prop, on a number of SV27's(elect.) the trim tabs were not mounted correctly at the factory(mounted so as to be below the hull) a few minutes with a small file to elongate the tabs mounting holes had mine tucked up where they were supposed to be. I also charge the batt packs just before I run mine.
oh btw congrats on a successfull recovery and return to shore.

So I'll need to buy all of that? A motor, a servo and a receiver? Sounds like an expensive lesson.

As Rex said, take everything apart, every cover has to be opened or come off, and let it dry thouroughly, preferably in a warm spot.
Provided you didn't try to run it when everything was still wet, and the motor wasn't turned on when it went under, chances are there will be something to resque.

Thanks RexR and pompebled. Wish I would have asked for tips (i.e. taping the hatch) before we took her for her maiden voyage. Oh well, no doubt we'll have a story to tell for years to come. The crowd did cheer when Dad popped up to the surface with boat in hand. Looks like no luck on it working. Another novice error, when it was bow up and bobbing, I did try throttle to see I could pull off a miracle. Still, perhaps I should start with just the receiver. It looks like it has the most electronics and therefore most likely to fail. Thoughts?

esc on the brushless supervee is supposed to be water resistant/proof so i'd suspect your receiver is dead (unless it works after drying out). the servo could also end up doa. i'm surprised your son's boat sank, though. they come with a piece of foam stuffed into the bow... that should have at least kept the bow poking up. i'd suggest adding more foam inside, too.

before i run my boats for the first time i open the electronics and hose them down with a water-proofing spray. don't have it on me right now to give its name, but i found it at true value hardware near the wd-40. small, white can. another brand i've heard of is called corrosionX. anything like this will help to keep water damage to a minimum (hopefully none).

the motor should be okay getting wet. just dry it out before running again. might be good to spray the water-proofing stuff in the can, too, to prevent water corrosion over time.

You guys are very helpful. As it ended up, so was my local hobby store. I did fry the receiver and the servo, but the motor is fine. Assuming the receiver arrives this week, we'll be back in business for a week of vacation on a lake starting next weekend and I should be back to "good Dad" status. I did have a trim tab installed below the transom. It was an easy adjustment. Hopefully, that will address cavitation. Regarding taping the hatch, do you tape it shut from the outside, or does it require special tape that seals the trough that the hatch sits in? If it's on the outside, will scotch tape work? Mine did have foam in the bow, but unfortunately, QA at the plant must not test how much is needed to float the boat. I got lucky this time with a park reservoir only 10 feet deep. I'm definitely adding more foam. Thanks for all your suggestions. This new boater is learning a lot and I sincerely appreciate it. Feel free to offer any other suggestions you've learned from experience.

I'd also recommend thinking twice about diving in after your boat.
I don't know the water/circumstances , your son may have been sad to see his boat sink,but better it sink than his father drown-take care mate.No boat is worth drowning for.

then again, not much else you could do in this case except to use a boat to get out on the water and then dive in.... after you get some more flotation in the boat, consider picking up a second, toy boat for retrieval purposes. fishing line with a ball or other floaty object on the end works real well, too. throw (cast) past your boat, let the float drift behind your boat with the line and then slowly pull it in. you'll hopefully snag the prop, rudder or something. i've also seen others put small hooks (like a keychain hook) on the upper surface of the bow tip as it's hard to snag your drive components when the boat is upright.

oh yeah, that spray i use is called inox. the can is about the size of an 8oz red bull, is white with a blue label (inox is in red lettering) and a red cap.

The industrial strength and absolute quality of INOX will quickly displace moisture, penetrate the severest of corrosion, lubricate and give lasting protection from all forms of corrosion for all electronics and electrical components, parts and equipment, marine and fishing equipment, industrial transport, farming and aviation machinery and equipment, commercial office, printing, laundry, milling and machinery and equipment, guns and sporting equipment, and in all domestic situations.

I use hockey tape, have heard of others using vinyl electricians tape. basically you cover the gap betwixt the hatch and the deck(tape over the hatch latch too). btw on mine it turns out that I need to leave a 3/16" gap between drive dog and the strut. you need 29 cubic inches per pound of boat of floatiation. hth
rex

I put foam noodle chunks everywhere I could find room. No chance of this baby sinking...and I use $1 clear tape for the hatch. She comes back from most runs bone-dry. There's foam behind the batteries and in front, filling the rest of the bow. I even put some smaller chunks on top of and in front of the packs to keep them from flying around and damaging the hull in a bad crash.

Don't forget to glue foam to the hatch, too, just in case. I used epoxy for all foam.